A Thermodynamic Answer to Why Birds Migrate

Bird migration provided the perfect “natural experiment” for testing the energy idea because birds adjust their global distribution with the changing seasons, according to Marius Somveille, the postdoctoral researcher at the Max Planck-Yale Center for Biodiversity Movement and Global Change in New Haven who led the effort. They had previously collected empirical data on the global distribution and seasonal migration patterns of the planet’s 10,000 bird species: where species were particularly rich or sparse, for example, and how many species came and went from given regions during the winter or summer. The model dictated that each new species would — while taking into account the locations of the other competing virtual species — choose the scenario that allowed it to gain the most energy while minimizing the four energetic costs associated with its metabolism, reproduction, thermal regulation and migration.

Source: www.quantamagazine.org